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| Bernstein |
Wild Wild West: (Elmer Bernstein) During its run on
television during the late 1960's, "The Wild Wild West" was an immensely
popular show, living on for decades in syndication. The concept was
cool, with two gadget-wielding agents of the American government saving
the country in the old West. Many film adaptations of old shows have
suffered terrible deaths through the years, but
Wild Wild West
may just take the trophy. Director Barry Sonnenfeld was typically a safe
bet for a good blockbuster at the time, but the combination of Will
Smith, Kevin Kline, and Kenneth Branagh in the leading roles, despite
the lengthy credentials of the latter two, was almost as disastrous as
the script. Few critics spared
Wild Wild West their worst marks,
lamenting the damage the film could do to the original series. For lack
of a better word, this film was stupid. It insulted the intelligence of
8-year-olds and left Will Smith hanging in the awkward position of
acting in a film that he obviously knew was awful... and it shows. It's
no surprise that Sonnenfeld (or the studio) would turn to veteran Elmer
Bernstein for this project. Nearing retirement, Bernstein was still
heralded at the time as the foremost living Western composer (despite
Jerry Goldsmith and Ennio Morricone's contributions to the genre), and
many collectors were enthusiastic to see Bernstein receive a mainstream
assignment after several years of disappointments. One thing becomes
increasingly clear the longer you listen to his score for the film:
Bernstein must have seen it for the flop that it would be, for how else
do you explain such a ridiculous score? While some film music collectors
maintain that
Wild Wild West is a decent standalone Western
score, it's far closer to the parody realm than they may want to admit.
In some ways, that parody attitude makes
Wild Wild West an
insufferable listening experience. At the same time, though, the
competency with which Bernstein executes that comedy is really enjoyable
in other parts. The overall score, as a result, is a mixed bag of old
memories, awkward transitions, and elements you wish had been saved for
a better picture.
With only a month in which to deliver a large-scale
score for the film, Bernstein (77 years old at the time) once again
employed his son Peter for assistance on some of the cues. Bernstein's
themes and motifs would be an amalgamation of previous ideas from his
career and others'. His title theme is along the lines of two classics:
The Magnificent Seven and, moreso, Alfred Newman's
How the
West Was Won. A "go get 'em" action motif is lifted directly from
his own
Stripes score, with several comedy sketches pulling
inspiration from
Airplane! Instrumental similarities to
Ghostbusters are owed to sporadic use of guitars and the usual
ondes martenot. A quick motif for the Loveless villain is introduced in
the opening titles and receives occasional reference, though the real
personality of Branagh's overblown accent is provided in the "Loveless,
Hallelujah" choral outburst (along with a quote from Britain's "God Save
the Queen") in "Loveless' Plan." An exotic dance piece irritatingly
concludes that cue as necessary for Smith's drag impression. Other
pieces of comedy come into play when Bernstein overtly addresses Smith's
attitude with gospel funk; the electric bass and organ in "Main Title,"
"West Fights," and "The Cornfield" are nothing better than an annoyance.
The two best action cues are, incidentally, those written by Peter
Bernstein under the templates established by his father. The enhanced
baseline in "Goodbye Loveless," complete with Goldsmith-style cracking
of whips, is a highlight. One of the more curious aspects of the
Bernsteins' score for this film is the relative lack of incorporation of
Richard Markowitz's original theme for the TV series. It's used twice in
the film, but does not appear anywhere on the short Varèse
Sarabande album. One thankful omission from the score album is Smith's
atrocious rap song that best defined the movie for most viewers.
Overall,
Wild Wild West is a score that can't decide if it's
going to be a serious action piece or a comedic parody. As a result, you
hear Elmer and his son struggle to adapt previous scores into a film
that they must have known would fail miserably.
** @Amazon.com: CD or
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| Bias Check: |
For Elmer Bernstein reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.25
(in 18 reviews)
and the average viewer rating is 3.15
(in 10,282 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
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The insert includes no extra information about the score or film.
